Hey everyone! My name is Caii (yes, that's my real name) and I'm in a bit of trouble...

I'm a first year college student, and a now ex-friend of mine had a betta fish. Well, said friend of mine accidentally left his betta fish on campus over our month-long break with no one to care for it... we come back, and I found out that the poor thing was in dire need of some TLC. Like, it was bad: it wasn't moving, and the water was so low and so dark.. I though the fish had died. Upon further inspection, however, the fish was alive. I immediately changed his water to the best of my knowledge, fed him (since he hadn't had food in at least a few weeks) and tried to make him comfortable... then harassed my now ex-friend about animal cruelty and what not. To which point, he said, "It's a goddamn fish! You care so much? Take it or I'll flush him." So I took the "goddamn" fish and brought him home today... and this is where I'm in trouble.

The little fish is in what I think is a half-gallon container with a lid, some colorful rocks, a yellow Ferrari and some fake foliage. I don't know anything about fish keeping, other than the fact that this little guy needs a bigger space with some real aquatic plants to lead a comfortable life.

I've read the posts and joined this site because I've nowhere to go. I intend to keep Bo (that's what I think I'll call him) until he dies, and I hope I can keep him so that he leads a long, healthy life.

That being said, my knowledge level is at zero. I currently have him on my little table with a tea light candle far enough away to light up the tank and possibly warm it without hurting Bo, but I'm afraid that the tank may still be too cold. I have no money for a thermometer, or anything else Bo needs, but I'm currently working to find someone who wouldn't mind being charitable with a spare tank or funds (if there ever was such a thing!)

All in all, what could I do to make do with the current situation? How can I help this fish when he needs all the help he can get?

All advice and comments are direly, desperately, and graciously appreciated.

Thank you so much for reading this post and I hope to hear from you soon!

P.S.- Are bubble a good sign? He became much more active since the water change and food to my happy surprise and blew bubbles (that's good, right? ^///^; )

Attached is a photo of his current set up in my room!
Comments/ concerns? Thank you!

Good for you! As much as I advocate bigger you can keep him in his current container if you do water changes frequently, say 50% every 3-4 days. some would also suggest a 100% per week. You need a water conditioner to make the tap water safe for him, I use Prime. The main thing he's going to need is clean, warm water. If at all possible invest in a heater for him so his water can be at least 76F & get a thermometer to monitor the temp.. With those 3 things, water conditioner, heater & thermometer, you may spend $30 or more depending on where you purchase them & what kind you get. Start with those things & then go from there as funds allow.

If you have anything black like paper or bubble wrap, you can put it on top and put a light near (Or the setup by a light) and it will absorb through and get trapped inside the tank and warm the tank a little bit. I see your in Texas so it shouldn't be as cold as it is here in Canada :D

Hope all goes well, Craigslist is a good spot to start looking for second-hand items at a decent price, if not free!

Oh I am so glad that you rescued poor Bo!!! Flushing a fish is so cruel. Anyhow this will be a bit difficult..... to remain healthy bettas need a heater, filter and a larger tank. If you may be able to obtain funds for these in the hopefully near future then there is still hope for your boy.

In the mean time....... Bettas need stable temperatures in order to remain healthy, temperature fluctuations compromises their immune system and puts them at risk of all sorts of terrible illnesses. (Hence they need a heater). Anyway until you can get one be sure to wrap his tank up with blankets and towels at night time to help insulate him. Also try to find the warmest place in your house with the most stable temperature.....some people say that on top of a fridge keep the temp pretty stable but he would still need to be wrapped up at least at night.

Because his tank is so tiny I would recommend 50% water changes every 2-3 days. Be sure to add a good water conditioner which will remove toxic chlorine from the water as well as other harmful heavy metals etc.

Good for you! As much as I advocate bigger you can keep him in his current container if you do water changes frequently, say 50% every 3-4 days. some would also suggest a 100% per week. You need a water conditioner to make the tap water safe for him, I use Prime. The main thing he's going to need is clean, warm water. If at all possible invest in a heater for him so his water can be at least 76F & get a thermometer to monitor the temp.. With those 3 things, water conditioner, heater & thermometer, you may spend $30 or more depending on where you purchase them & what kind you get. Start with those things & then go from there as funds allow.

Thank you for answering!
I have the water conditioner! The guy I got Bo from gave me Bo, the tank, the fake plants, the rocks, the Ferrari and some water conditioner. I had to go buy food because I forgot to grab that on my way out... ^^;

If you have anything black like paper or bubble wrap, you can put it on top and put a light near (Or the setup by a light) and it will absorb through and get trapped inside the tank and warm the tank a little bit. I see your in Texas so it shouldn't be as cold as it is here in Canada :D

Hope all goes well, Craigslist is a good spot to start looking for second-hand items at a decent price, if not free!

Matt

Thank you for the Craigslist idea and for responding! I never really thought about that~ XD

I disagree with needing a filter... They also don't NEED a larger tank. A half gallon is not good long term, but I will say that he is in better hands now with you than he was with your ex-friend.

If you happen to find someone who will be nice enough to give you a larger tank and a heater, that would be great! But right now, frequent water changes will be best for him. It's difficult to properly heat that size tank, especially without a heater... even with a heater, a 1/2 gallon is hard to heat consistently.

Edit: sorry. No, tetra is not a very great brand but it will do. Omega One is a good quality brand, as well as New Life Spectrum, but the Omega One should be a little cheaper.

Thank you for answering!
I have the water conditioner! The guy I got Bo from gave me Bo, the tank, the fake plants, the rocks, the Ferrari and some water conditioner. I had to go buy food because I forgot to grab that on my way out... ^^;

Is Tetra a good brand?

Good on the conditioner. As for the food it will do if he's eating it but when you can get some Omega One or New Life Spectrum pellets they're better quality. A little more expensive but its a lot of food & will last a long time. Also feeding them frozen blood worms, brine shrimp & daphnia once or twice a week is good too. You can get freeze dried blood worms if you don't want to get frozen just soak them for a few minutes before feeding.

Oh I am so glad that you rescued poor Bo!!! Flushing a fish is so cruel. Anyhow this will be a bit difficult..... to remain healthy bettas need a heater, filter and a larger tank. If you may be able to obtain funds for these in the hopefully near future then there is still hope for your boy.

In the mean time....... Bettas need stable temperatures in order to remain healthy, temperature fluctuations compromises their immune system and puts them at risk of all sorts of terrible illnesses. (Hence they need a heater). Anyway until you can get one be sure to wrap his tank up with blankets and towels at night time to help insulate him. Also try to find the warmest place in your house with the most stable temperature.....some people say that on top of a fridge keep the temp pretty stable but he would still need to be wrapped up at least at night.

Because his tank is so tiny I would recommend 50% water changes every 2-3 days. Be sure to add a good water conditioner which will remove toxic chlorine from the water as well as other harmful heavy metals etc.

Good on you for rescuing him let us know how he goes.

I agree completely; I think part of the reason I got so inflamed about the whole situation was because the guy really didn't seem to care about Bo... I mean, I didn't know the fish, but I didn't want him to die!

At this point, would you say the the thermometer is the key thing right now? I completely changed his water Wednesday, so he should be ok with that until the next partial change Saturday, right? I think if I can do full changes every week and partial changes every half week... maybe it would help more?

I'm just worried that his immune system isn't good because of the filth he was breathing in for god-knows how long... am I too worried? (Thanks for the reply!)

I disagree with needing a filter... They also don't NEED a larger tank. A half gallon is not good long term, but I will say that he is in better hands now with you than he was with your ex-friend.

If you happen to find someone who will be nice enough to give you a larger tank and a heater, that would be great! But right now, frequent water changes will be best for him. It's difficult to properly heat that size tank, especially without a heater... even with a heater, a 1/2 gallon is hard to heat consistently.

Edit: sorry. No, tetra is not a very great brand but it will do. Omega One is a good quality brand, as well as New Life Spectrum, but the Omega One should be a little cheaper.